Rhode Island students start Turning Point chapter after teacher incident

Students at a Rhode Island high school where a teacher mocked Charlie Kirk after his assassination are launching a Turning Point USA chapter to promote conservative values and free expression on campus.

“What inspired me personally to start this Turning Point chapter was the teacher at our school said after Charlie Kirk’s death, he made a TikTok about how he has no remorse over him and how he was a hateful person,” Brayden Ryan, vice president of the Turning Point USA chapter at Barrington High School in Rhode Island, told Fox News Digital in an interview Tuesday.

Shortly after Kirk’s public assassination Sept. 10 while speaking at Utah Valley University during his American Comeback Tour, social studies teacher Benjamin Fillo posted a video online saying that Kirk “hated the LGBTQ community” and “hated women’s rights.”

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Fillo, who was placed on administrative leave after his video post, also said in a video that Kirk “thought he proved how tough he was with his words… What a piece of garbage. Look what happens… Bye, Charlie!”

When conservative activist and mother Nicole Solas issued a public records request to review Fillo’s curriculum, including handouts, assignments, videos, links, resources, guides, worksheets, workbooks, prompts, and his emails, Barrington Public Schools said it would charge her $117,132 in order to gather all the materials. Solas is a mom living in a different school district whose kids are in a private school because the National Education Association Rhode Island (NEARI) sued her for sending public records requests four years ago.

Ryan, a freshman, said that starting the chapter has been “difficult” due to the political demographics of the area, but that he and fellow students are pushing ahead.

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“I feel like we should give space to other students, a free and safe space to other students, other conservative students, to speak their own personal values, such as their religious beliefs and their political beliefs,” Ryan said.

Caleb Kaplan, president of the Turning Point USA chapter, told Fox News Digital that some have been supportive of their efforts, while others have campaigned to reinstate Fillo.

“I’m not going to name any names out of respect, but they have been campaigning or making petitions to get the teacher that we spoke about back in a position,” Kaplan said.

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Kaplan, who is also a freshman, said the group tries to handle the pushback in a respectful way.

“We don’t reward hate with hate,” Kaplan said. “All we do is we push harder and we try to recruit more people to join.”

“Barrington High School students are always welcome and encouraged to pursue new clubs that reflect their interests,” Sarah Dell, spokesperson for Barrington School District, told Fox News Digital. “As with all proposed student organizations, there is a process outlined in our student activities protocol. The group of students expressing interest in forming a student Turning Point USA chapter has been provided that information. This is one of about a dozen new proposed student clubs currently moving through the same process.”

Fox News Digital has also reached out to Fillo for comment.